Killer attorney Alex Murdaugh could be granted retrial in latest case twist months after ‘jury tampering’ claims quashed

KILLER attorney Alex Murdaugh’s case could be considered for retrial months after it was ruled a county clerk’s actions did not impact the jury’s decision to find him guilty of double murder.

Lawyers for Murdaugh , 56, have pushed for a fresh trial ever since he was found guilty of murdering his wife Maggie, and their son Paul, 22, on their South Carolina hunting estate in 2021.

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Maggie Murdaugh/Facebook

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The lawyers accused Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill – who they claimed had “frequent private conversations with the jury foreperson” while writing a memoir on the case during the six-week trial – of tampering with the jury during his trial in 2023.

Those claims were overturned in January, when former South Carolina Chief Justice Jean Toal ruled Hill’s actions did not impact the jury’s decision .

On Tuesday, however, the South Carolina Supreme Court said it was willing to hear Murdaugh’s lawyer’s arguments to decide if he deserves a retrial, per CBS affiliate WCSC .

Defense attorneys Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin had asked the court in July to review Justice Toal’s January decision, arguing it was a matter of “significant public interest.”

They said the issue comes down to whether Murdaugh’s guilty verdict “should be overturned due to unprecedented jury tampering by a state official, the former Colleton County Clerk of Court.”

While a date to hear the case has not yet been set, the state’s Supreme Court could begin considering it for retrial before the end of the year.

‘WATCH HIM CLOSELY’

It comes more than a year after Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill wrote a memoir during Murdaugh’s six-week murder trial titled Behind the Doors of Justice: The Murdaugh Murders, which she started to sell in August 2023.

In the filing by Murdaugh’s legal team, attorneys Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin claimed Hill urged jurors to “reach a quick verdict.”

They also claimed she had “frequent private conversations with the jury foreperson” to entice a guilty verdict.

“Ms. Hill did these things to secure for herself a book deal and media appearances that would not happen in the event of a mistrial. Hill betrayed her oath of office for money and fame,” the filing claimed.

When jurors were approached about the accusations towards Hill, only Juror Z testified that her comments influenced her to convict Murdaugh.

Juror Z said in written testimony that Hill told the jury to “watch him closely” and “look at his actions and movements” right before Murdaugh took the stand.

Alex Murdaugh's Convictions

Attorney Alex Murdaugh faces multiple convictions and sentences for crimes related to murder and fraud.

• Murder of Maggie, wife – life sentence
• Murder of Paul, son – life sentence
• Possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, two counts – five years
• 22 fraud charges – 40 years, running concurrently with a 27-year sentence
  • One count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud – punishable by up to 30 years and $1,000,000 fine
  • One count of bank fraud – up to 30 years and $1,000,000
  • Two counts of wire fraud – up to 30 years and $1,000,000
  • Three counts of wire fraud – up to 20 years and $250,000
  • One count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud – up to 20 years and $1,000,000
  • Fourteen counts of money laundering – up to 20 years and $500,000

Source: US Attorney’s Office , District of South Carolina

Two other jurors recalled hearing Hill make comments about the trial when Murdaugh took the stand to testify.

However, they said her statements didn’t influence their decision to convict the disgraced attorney.

Nine other jurors denied hearing any comments from Hill.

The country clerk denied any tampering for financial or personal gain.

“I did not have a conversation with any juror about any topic related to this case,” Hill said.

In December 2023, the book ceased sales and was unpublished after Hill admitted to plagiarizing a portion of the book’s preface, per WCSC .

Three months later in March 2024, the county clerk resigned and decided not to run for reelection.

In January, Judge Jean Toal said Hill had made “fleeting and foolish comments” to jurors, but they didn’t affect the verdict.

“I simply do not believe that our South Carolina Supreme Court requires a new trial in a very lengthy trial on the strength of some fleeting and foolish comments by a publicity-seeking clerk of court,” Toal said at the time.

The judge also determined Hill was “not completely credible as a witness” and was “lured by the siren call of celebrity.”

GRUESOME MURDERS

Maggie and Paul Murdaugh were shot and killed near their dog kennels in Colleton County — 61 miles west of Charleston — On June 7, 2021.

Alex Murdaugh was arrested after police found a Snapchat video that connected him to the crime.

He was later indicted of the murders in July 2022.

When he was indicted, the disgraced attorney was already in jail for insurance fraud , conspiracy to commit insurance fraud, and filing a false police report .

During his murder trial, prosecutor Creighton Waters argued Murdaugh murdered his family to distract from his financial and criminal past.

He also argued Murdaugh’s legal empire started to unravel after Paul was involved in a fatal boat crash in 2019 that killed 19-year-old Mallory Beach .

In March 2023, Murdaugh was found guilty of killing his wife and son and was given two life sentences without the possibility of parole.

Following this conviction, in May of the same year, the killer was indicted on 22 new counts connected to his time as an attorney.

In November 2023, Murdaugh pleaded guilty to the crimes including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering.

He was sentenced to 27 years in prison.

In another turn of events, Murdaugh was sentenced to another 40 years in prison for defrauding clients in April 2024.

He was also ordered to pay almost $9 in restitution.

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